Four homeless people yesterday helped Pope Francis to celebrate his 77th birthday at the Vatican.

They were invited to attend the morning Mass which Francis celebrates daily at the Vatican hotel where he lives.

One of the men held his dog as he was presented to Francis after Mass. The Vatican said Francis invited his household help to join him in a “family-like” atmosphere, and he spoke of them one by one during his homily.

After Mass, all ate breakfast with Francis at the hotel. Francis has already blown out the candles on his birthday cake, presented to him on Saturday by children at the Vatican.

Another present awaits him when his favourite Argentine football team, San Lorenzo, will give him a replica of their cham-pionship trophy.

It was announced later that Francis will declare the 16th century Jesuit Pierre Favre a saint, bypassing the Vatican’s typical procedures in order to honour the first recruit of Jesuit founder St Ignatius Loyola.

Favre, who lived from 1506-1546, met Ignatius while the two were college roommates in Paris along with another prominent Jesuit, Francis Xavier.

Favre was later ordained and spent most of his ministry preaching Catholicism in Germany and elsewhere during the Protes-tant Reformation.

The Jesuit Pope recently spoke about Favre’s influence in his life, in particular his message of dialogue with anyone, including opponents.

It is the second time Francis has bypassed Vatican procedures to declare a saint, after John XXIII.